View Full Version : Chewed up crank pulley and shaft


proctorsilex
07-25-2007, 12:47 AM
My xA chewed up the crank pulley and crank shaft last Friday at the track. I do not know what caused the failure: the pin (drill bit piece) gouged out the hole around the crank pulley and on the crank shaft and the bolt came completely off.

My car kept throwing the power steering belt with the Agency pulley, so I went back to stock. It always threw it when I was transitioning from hard braking to a hard turn, which I think is a time of great stress on the steering (from reason and from my experiences after having to finish events without power steering).

The stock pulley must have been gripping when the Agency would have failed and thrown the belt which, combined with the SC, chewed things up.
On the Blitz, the belt clearance between the tensioner and the water pump is VERY small. I wonder whether the belt moves under stress enough to bridge that gap. Even a little rubbing could put a lot of stress on an already stressed crank pulle.y.

Rather than replace the engine or the crank shaft, I will be drilling some new holes and using two pins instead of one.

I will post pictures later.

I was at PDA's Grand Slam last Friday at the Pocono Raceway on the east course when things went south. That track is about 2.5-3 hours from home, so I had to figure something out before COB Friday or I or the car would be stuck there. With a little help, I was able to patch it together. Fortunately, the crank and the pulley pin holes were not completely chewed out. I used a piece of an allen wrench (pin) and some bits of a cotter pin (to fill in the chewed out volume). I bolted it down really tightly, prayed, turned the SC off, prayed some more, and took it home without reving the engine suddenly or doing anything wild. It worked.

Tamago
07-25-2007, 11:50 AM
wow, that's intense! i too have stripped out a crank pulley. stock one actually.. mine came from missing a shift however. fortunately i had an extra pulley from my other engine kicking around :D. good luck with the repairs! if you need a new crankshaft, let me know, i still have one from my old block!

jdlong
07-26-2007, 04:30 PM
That sucks man! So, do you think having the drill bit helped it hang on a little longer than the stock roll pin? Also, what holds the bit in place? You just slide it in and the washer/bolt hold it?? I hope you get things going again soon.

Tamago
07-31-2007, 11:55 AM
any updates on this? wanna sell your SC yet? ;)

proctorsilex
07-31-2007, 02:14 PM
i fixed it. i will be selling the SC soon. i do not recommend it if you will be be combining the sc with hard braking and turning. i also recommend using the shortest belt that will fit (1690 should fit). there is a very narrow clearance between the tensioner and the water pulley. i have a suspicion that the belt touches itself briefly under extreme conditions. street use is fine though.

proctorsilex
07-31-2007, 02:18 PM
oh yeah. i am 95% certain that i will be selling the xA too. i am loathe to, but no room for two cars withot getting storage. i am buying a PoS 1991 civic for performance driving that will probably double as a daily driver.

Tamago
07-31-2007, 08:00 PM
keep in touch with me when you get ready to sell.. i'll figure out how to make the SC work for me :D

proctorsilex
07-31-2007, 10:29 PM
ok man, just be aware that it could be rather impossible if you run into the same problem. who knows, maybe i did not do it right.

i considered remounting the tensioner, but there really is nowhere for it to go because it is right next to the engine mount.

you will also want to consider water injection and possibly ceramic coating the inside of the manifold. if you vent the PCV to the atmosphere through a catch can, then that frees up a tapped opening on the manifold that would be a good location for an injector.

believe me, i had fancy plans for this car.

proctorsilex
07-31-2007, 10:30 PM
oh yeah, and AC might be a probalem despite Bltiz's claims to the contrary X{

Tamago
08-01-2007, 11:58 AM
hehe i don't need no stinkin AC :)

but definitely interested when the day comes.. let me save my $$ :)